April 2, 2022

WILMINGTON, Del. — In a public ceremony delayed two years by the pandemic, President Joe Biden on Saturday commissioned the USS Delaware, a nuclear attack submarine, saying it would enhance national security, though he made no reference to the global turmoil from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“As the commander in chief, I believe it is our sacred obligation as a nation to prepare and equip those troops that we send into harm’s way and to care for them and their families when they return home,” he told a crowd of invited guests and dignitaries assembled on a sunny but chilly spring day on a restricted part of the dock in Wilmington.

This latest Navy ship to carry the Delaware name, the president said in brief remarks, “is part of a long tradition of serving our nation proudly and strengthening our nation’s security ... not just us, but our allies and partners around the world as well. In fact, it’s already been doing that for some time.”

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